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  3. May 2023

May 2023

Spousal Abuse & Suicidal Ideation among Women

1China Rani Mittra, 2Ashees Kumar Saha, 3ahmida Khanam
1Nursing Instructor, Khulna Nursing College, Khulna, Bangladesh.
2Nursing Instructor, Pabna Nursing College, Pabna, Bangladesh.
3Assistant Professor, (Virology) National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine, Mohakhali, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
DOI : https://doi.org/10.58806/ijirme.2023.v2i5n02

Abstract

Background: Spousal abuse is a broad term that encompasses a wide range of abusive behaviors occurring within romantic relationships. These can include but are not limited to coercion, intimidation, social isolation, and financial control, restrictions on education or career opportunities, physical violence, and sexual violence. Methods: This mixed-methods design, comprising descriptive cross-sectional and qualitative study was conducted among 203 and for In-depth interviews with 10 ever-married women aged 15-49 years in Dhopadi village under Abhaynagar upazila of Jashore district. Data were collected through face-to-inter interviews with the help of a semi–structured and unstructured questionnaire. Associations of spousal violence with suicidal ideation among women found out. Results: It was found that the majority of women reported sharing their husband's daily activities (80.3%) and their own (74.9%), as well as their worries or feelings (80.8%). Interestingly, a higher percentage of women reported that their husband shares their worries or feelings with them (72.9%) compared to the percentage who reported sharing their own (74.9%). prevalence of spousal violence and suicidal ideation it was found that 65% of women reported a history of being slapped by their husbands, while 54.7% reported a history of being insulted, and 22.2% reported a history of being forced into sexual intercourse. Additionally, 34.5% of women reported a history of thinking about ending their life, while 7.9% reported a history of trying to take their life. Furthermore, the chi-square values and p-values suggest that there is a significant association between a history of slaps (χ2=40.224, p=.000), hit with a fist or something else (χ2=22.651, p=.000), kick (χ2=52.985, p=.000), insult by husband (χ2=45.436, p=.000), a threat by husband (χ2=12.494, p=.000), and trying to take life (χ2=9.342, p=.002), and thoughts about ending one's life. Conclusions: These findings are significant as they shed light on the prevalence of domestic violence and its impact on mental health in Bangladesh. The study's results suggest a need for interventions to address the issue of domestic violence and provide support to those affected by it.

Keywords:

Spouse, Abuse, Suicidal ideation, Violence, Domestic violence.

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